As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father had been.
1 Kings 11:4 NIV
Solomon asked God for wisdom to rule his people well. And God granted his request along with great riches. During Solomon’s lifetime, no king could compare with him (1 Kings 3:13).
When he was young, Solomon dedicated his heart to the Lord. But Solomon had a problem. He loved foreign women. Women from the nations God had forbidden Israel to intermarry with (1 Kings 11:2).
1 Kings 11:3 describes Solomon as having 700 wives of noble birth and 300 concubines. Many of these likely were the result of sealing political alliances. But Solomon seemed to accumulate wives in the same way he accumulated gold, silver, spices, and horses. And in this, he showed a remarkable lack of wisdom, disobeying God’s command concerning marriage with foreign women.
As he grew old, his wives exerted a growing influence on him, turning his heart from devotion to the Lord. And Solomon began to worship their gods as well. And it led to disaster for his family and the nation.
Solomon’s example should serve as a warning to us all. Not a warning against accumulating wives. But a warning to guard our hearts and minds. The allure of this world and its gods can exert significant influence. And even the wisest and most blessed of God can fall when we allow our hearts to turn to those things rather than to God alone. But to do so will be costly to our life with the Lord.
We should follow the example of King Josiah instead. “He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD and followed the ways of his father David, not turning aside to the right or to the left” (2 Ch. 34:2).
